Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Maine

The issue is estate planning, taxes and protecting against future claims by heirs. While it is perfectly acceptable for a property to be sold below appraisal, if it is not a sale on the open market (as yours is not) then a sale below appraisal raises the issue of possible gift tax to your Grandmother, making use of applicable exclusions, and whether or not she is selling it below appraised value knowingly, not being taken advantage of, it is her free will to do so, etc. If she passed away suddenly, other heirs could challenge the validity of the sale below appraisal if it is not properly documented to show she intended to do so, ie- make a gift to you of the difference between sale price and appraised value.